June 18, 2017. As our excursions have been getting longer and more remote, I’ve started paying more attention to things like the amount of extra fuel and water we carry. It’s still nothing too extreme - 6 gallons of fuel (50-100 miles) and 6 gallons of water (several days). And for convenience of packing, I’ve switched over to Rotopax from the cheapo red plastic gas cans and 1-gallon milk jugs. Of course, even finding deals on Craigslist means that I’ve spent a small fortune on the containers. But, they look great and are relatively compact when a trip gets started……
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General catch-all category for content relating to 2000 Tacoma modifications.
May 25, 2017. I’m not getting any younger, that’s for sure. It used to be that I could do all kinds of manual labor for 20 hours/day, wake up the next day, and do it all again. I’d hurt myself in some semi-major way and my body would heal itself quickly. Now, I get a little cut somewhere and it takes a week to heal. And if I work for 20 hours one day, I want to sleep for 20 hours the next. With all that in mind, I quickly realized that I needed a better way to fill my…
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April 2, 2017. Thousands of miles. How far have I travelled on washboard roads at full tire pressure? Definitely thousands of miles. Probably not ten thousand, but enough that I wish I’d have known how much better life is when you can air down and air back up without too much hassle. Luckily, while I’m still cheap, I’ve smartened up over the years, and I know that some things are worth a little extra. And comfort is one of those things. So, it’s time to install an ARB CKMA12 air compressor. I’ve opted for the single compressor here rather than…
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April 2017. Wires everywhere. That’s how it’s starting to feel with the various accessories that I’ve added to the truck. Sure, I tuck them away here, and zip-tie them away there to try to clean things up, but in the end I still have several pair of wires running from various fuses and relays in the engine compartment to accessories and switches on the truck. As someone who likes organization, it’s always bothered me. Luckily, there are solutions out there for those of us who like order. There are pre-made fuse boxes from folks like Blue Sea Systems, and there…
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February 14, 2017. You may recall that no too long ago I decided to purchase a CVT, and then of course realized that the truck would need a bed rack to attach said CVT. That led to my Millermatic 211 acquisition, and the realization that this bed rack was the beginning of yet another expensive hobby (metalwork). Excited to get going, I started looking for bed rack designs. I wanted something that would support the CVT - both on the road as well as deployed would position the top of the CVT "in-line" with the top of the cab -…
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November 2016. Most of the time, modifications I make to the truck are firmly in the "meh" camp for @mrs.turbodb. I mean, she appreciates the results, but she'd really be just as happy without them. And, they generally garner at least some amount of teasing about how they aren't technically necessary or how much money was spent (by which I mean, "if you give a mouse a cookie…") But this time was different. This time, there was a sparkle in her eyes. One of the first things I did to the truck in 1999 - six days after I brought…
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October 18, 2016. When I purchased the Sportz Truck Tent back in 2012 (see Sportz Truck Tent and Truck Bedzzz), I thought to myself, "Boy, I'm really living large and spending the big bucks now." The tent cost me $189 big ones, and the air mattress was another $90. I don't know if RTT's (Roof Top Tent's) like Cascadia Vehicle Tents existed then, but if they did, I didn't know about them and they would have been out of my price range. Today, I committed to really living large - I paid for a Mt. Shasta CVT - on sale…
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October 9, 2016. When the winch was installed, it was obviously wired right up to the battery - this made a lot of sense, since it was easy, allowed us to get it spooled up, and is of course the way Warn recommends installing it. But I wanted something better. Or at least more flexible. I wanted to have a way to disconnect the winch from the battery when it wasn't in use (just so I don't have a bunch of #2 AWG wire hot to the winch all the time, and I wanted a way to quickly hook up…
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October 2, 2016. The day before we left for Crater Lake, the mid-skid had arrived - but I didn't have time to paint and install it before we took off. Not a big deal, since the IFS skid covers just as much as both stock plates. But of course, I wanted to get the mid-skid on just as soon as possible, so upon our return I figured some after-work cleanup and painting was in order. As expected, the unpainted skid had a bit of surface rust and dirt on it, so my first task after unboxing was to give both…
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September 2016. As an astute reader will recall, when the Relentless armor was installed, the skid plates were placed in the back of the truck. Actually, just one was placed in the back, since the second wasn't going to fit my truck - a California model with an extra catalytic converter. Upon getting the first skid home, I painted it immediately with a couple coats of Rustoleum professional enamel primer, and a few coats of flat black. Looked reasonably good. "I like the R," said @mini.turbodb. Then, I waited. I mean, I should put both skids on at once, I…
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September 2016. When I initially mentioned to Dad that I was going to get a winch and plate bumper, he had two questions for me. How's that going to be for your gas mileage? You gonna get some more lights? Hella's or PIAA's? Little did he know that I'd already purchased some Hella 500's, and they were sitting in the dining room collecting dust. I mean, who wouldn't buy some Hella's, knowing that a new bumper was coming in 6 months, right? Plus, they were a great deal on Amazon (well, they were the same price as always). I ignored…
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August 23, 2016. The trip was a long awaited one. But first, some background. The lead up Six months ago (Feb 2016), I'd decided it was finally time to get a winch on my Tacoma - to allow me to get out of jams (if I get in one); to increase safety on certain trails when we're out solo, and to open up new trails where a blow-down may need to be moved out of the way (for instance). Initially I was going to go with a hidden front hitch, and a winch that I could move to the front…
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August 7, 2016. I've suffered enough. That Panasonic stereo I installed back in 2013 was great for the Bluetooth, and it was nice for playing videos, but the UI was just horrendous. I mean, why can't there be an option to just make the background black, and not some pulsating craziness that belongs in "The Fast-er-est and Furious-er-est," not a Toyota Tacoma? Plus, I'm getting to that point where I should just buy what I want - I mean, I've learned from Pops that I'm just spending @mini.turbodb's inheritance at this point, even if she did love the old stereo…
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June 12, 2016 Epic journey behind us, it was time to find out what was wrong with the engine and get it fixed. Step 1: Read the error code. To do that, I bought a Kiwi3 OBDII adapter and the DashCommand app. Error code P0131 - which in mechanic-speak is "bank 1 too lean" and in human is "dirty air intake." Side note: these two gadgets are an awesome combination. With them, it's like having a car from 2010 - instant fuel economy, average fuel economy, and all sorts of stats, coming directly from the computer. Sweet. Step 2: Fix…
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May 18, 2016 First generation Toyota Tacoma's are known as great trucks. The horns - specifically on 2000 Tacoma's - not so much. For some reason, Toyota decided to only put "half a horn" in the 2000's, and it's obvious. The thing is wimpy. It's quieter than my Honda CBR 600 F2 motorcycle. It's time to make a change. As with most projects, this one starts with opening up the hood, and in this case, taking off the grille, which is held on with 8 little retaining clips. And with that, the weakness that is the OEM horn is revealed.…
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March 20 - April 28, 2016 Courtesy lights are those little lights around the car that turn on when you open your doors. They generally include the dome light, some door lights, that kind of thing. Now, I know what you're thinking - "How in the world does disabling the courtesy lights take five and a half weeks?" Electricity. And negative switching. For years, I've wanted a way to disable the courtesy lights - mostly so that when camping, the doors can stay open without having to worry that the battery will run down. But of course, finding the right…
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February 2016. Or March. Sort of April. If you're going to lift your truck, there are two ways to do it. You can do it for looks, or you can do it for real. For looks, you're talking about a spacer lift or a body lift - something that raises the truck but doesn't raise the performance. For real, you're talking about a suspension lift - replacing all the parts that make up the suspension on the truck, and in doing so, improving the performance - both on and off road. Clearly, you want a suspension lift. But, we're getting…
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August 2015. After driving the same truck for 15 years on the same set of (original) tires, you get to know how it feels, how it sounds, and frankly - how it smells. It still smelled normal. But it didn't sound or feel normal when we were on our way home from work, that hot August afternoon. Thump thump thump and shake shake shake. I'm sure to other drivers, my front left wheel looked crazy-out-of-balance as we made our way (slowly) over the bridge. As soon as we got home, @mini.turbodb decided that we needed to see what all that…
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Summer's here and we decided to go camping at our super-secret-undisclosed-location-that-you-have-to-rush-to-or-someone-else-will-get-there-first. While there, we had a great time, including an epic fire that was bigger than our daughter. But being four years old, and sitting in the back seat for three hours each direction, @mini.turbodb understandably got bored and started playing around (unbeknownst to us) with the back window in the truck, ultimately leaving it unlatched/unlocked. No biggie, except that when we got back, I parked the truck in the alley behind the house and left it overnight, where some young hooligan randomly happened to try the back window and…
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January 13, 2013. It turns out that auto tech changes in a decade. "What?," you say. "Yes, yes it does." Before @mrs.turbodb and her Audi (which I call a station wagon, but she'll have me tell you is a "Dark Gray 2008 Audi A4 Avante named 'Kitty'"), I'd never experienced Bluetooth in a car. Not for phone calls, not for streaming podcasts, nothing. I mean, I'd only gotten my Windows Phone 7 a few months earlier. But the Bluetooth in the Audi - that was a great thing. So, it was time to get Bluetooth in the truck. As always,…
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